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Chalk
The Duchy of Chalk was established around seventy five years after the Wave of Purification, the holy crusade orchestrated by the Prominar to rid the heretics that worshipped the Fables. Prior to the Wave the territory was simply refered to as Northwood, the name of the sprawling forest that covers the majority of the territory that has kept its same name to this day. The people of Chalk are mostly common forest folk who make their living from the woods, living either in the woods or on the outskirts in one of the many settlements. They are a people of strong traditions; having consistently come under attack from the Holy Order due to their religious beliefs this has formed a unity amongst the people there. Chalk stood for centuries without any real class system, adopting a more clan like structure similar to their neighbours to the west in Scarfell. The nobility that exists in Chalk today is that which has been imposed by the King in his effort to convert the wild territory into a more compliant Duchy; establishing more permanent Keep and Wall Towns and also the capital city of Tomony the King has handed out titles and ownership of land to those who will try and enforce the Kings Law in an effort to make those who share his vision help to keep the unruly clans under control. Duchy Locations The History of Chalk The Parted Lands The exact time that this came about is unknown but Chalk has long been divided into two territories, the North Folk and the South Folk, determined by which side of the Northwood River they were born to. Though each area was made up from its own families, clans and settlements, there has always first and foremost been a north and south divide that has resulted in a number of skirmishes throughout the centuries, but no all out war. The closest the territory had ever come to a full scale war has been dated back to around 565AE as a number of the river settlements began to get into more heated disputes with those on the other side of the water. The skirmishes began to get more violent as was slowly building up to a full scale war. The only thing that appears to have interjected was the attack on Northwood by the Holy Order from the south and the foreign invaders. Where the two sides were close to war they instead united against the Valorians, so unified were they that even after the Wave of Purification the north/south divide had almost cease to exist and instead had further instilled a sense of national pride and binding them to each other against any outside enemies. The Wave of Purification In 568AE the rise of Eighth Prominar of the Holy Order would mark the start of a dark age of holy crusades against the heretic worshipers of the Fables and so by holy decree began a Campaign that would last four years to purify the northern territories. Due to their strong religious belief in the Nomon the area known as Northwood came under heavy attack during the Wave as holy Inquisitors spread their religious teachings throughout the land like a cancer, dealing swiftly and violently to any who would not convert. Conversion was an option offered to very few, knowing full well people would claim to adopt the new faith to save their own lives, ghastly executions and punishments were handed out to show others the consequences of heresy. Two punishments in particular were popular with the Inquisitori, the first was to hang heretics from the trees of the woods as a message, once a forest settlement had been found and conquered the dead were hung up high in the high branched pine trees to rot in the humid forests. Often the stench of so many dead could be smelled from far away, a sign to all around that the Inquisitori had passed through. Any who had not died in a settlements conquering would suffer a similar a fate known as being "low-strung", hung alive from the trees by their hands and around two meters from the ground, the smell of death would attract all manor of predators from the forests. The dead hung so high up in the trees meant they were out of reach for the wolves, bears and woodland cats that would make light work of the helpless "heretic" and eating them from the feet upwards. Alternatively the victim may be hung up from their feet so that their head was close to the ground, but here the victim would have their fingers shattered so whilst they would still be able to pull themselves up (avoiding blacking out) they were unable to untie the knots that suspended them. The second punishment popular in this time was the "long walk", letting the heretic loose into the woods but severing the achilles tendon behind their ankle. Permanently crippling the person and ensuring they could not walk, they would general die of starvation or some wounds or found by the predators of the forest. The settlement of Tomony was established as a place for the Valorian Army to coordinate their attacks from, with both land and coastal access to the settlement. Thousands were killed from both sides, but the number of forestfolk were greatly reduced as the armies pushed into the forests and it was a gruesome and dark war for all involved and it was only at the Prominars assassination did it finally come to an end. The way the people of their faith were hunted and executed in this time has left a lasting impression on those born in Northwood, a hatred that has been passed down through the generations by those who still hold to the traditions of the Nomon. Whilst not everyone of the faith despises those who worship the Progeny, there is a clear generations old animosity. 'The Unification - Northwood' During the Unification in Date Northwood was ( - the Unification will be when the northern territories were united; The Dales, Scarfell and Northwood, which became Chalk). The War of the Duchies For the most part Chalk played little to no part in the War save for financial support to Duke Arenti as their closest neighbour, though no commitment of troops was ever made. Politics The duchy is continuously under attack from bandits who use Northwood as a perfect hideaway. Targetting travelers in the forest and the settlements on the outskirts, these bandits regularly make attacks on the properties and holdings of the duchies nobility or wealthy traders. Whilst many only appear to ply their trade on those with wealth, leaving the commonfolk alone, there are some more unscrupulous bandits who will attack even the peasant villages. However, there are some that do fight for a cause, to fight out against the new nobility and the King, and they fight as forest renegades; rebels going head to head with the Kings cause. Due to the the continued assaults the King passed a law three months ago proclaiming that living within the forest of Northwood to be illegal and working in them can only be done by for those who have attained a writ from one of the Town Keeps sheriffs. Though it hasn't curbed crime or the attacks, the Kings army is now able to kill any trespassers who do not have their writ, making identifying possible bandits a lot easier. The writ itself costs money to purchase, a yearly documentation bought from the sherrifs, which has lead to much corruption within the system; many are unable to pay for the writs and so often work the forests for their trade illegally at their own risk. There is no Old Nobility born to the Duchy of Chalk, many of the lords and ladies who now keep residence there being of the New Nobles elevated by King Arenti as thanks for their financial support during the War of the Duchies and a handful of nobles who may have moved there in the years prior. At its roots Chalk/Northwood has always been of a people who lived off the land, willing to settle their own disputes, but in more recent years the Nobility have begun to force their authority on the native people of Chalk. Combined with the contention over their held religion, there is much bad blood between the traditionalists of Chalk and those of Valor. Caste System Nobility The Nobility is generally of a new generation, not people born of Chalk but those granted ownership of its lands since the Unification. As the forest folk of Chalk had never legally laid claim to their own land once the territory became a duchy and fell under the crown its lands were distributed however the throne felt was fitting. A number of manors and estates exist that house these lords and ladies, but living in a land where they are often under threat from the native inhabitants means that all but the more wealthy nobility who can house their own private armies in a Town Keep fortification will generally spend any long period of time in the hostile duchy. Three of the largest Noble Houses can be marked by the Town Keeps that they have established on their land ruled over by the Barons (and a Baroness); their continued use by the foresters have opened up trade previously closed off to the wood dwellers. The three houses are: *House Greendale (Greendale Keep) *House Devan'ire (Wildermarket) *House Rostan (Duskwood) Foresters Since the Kings Law has been passed regarding the necessity of a writ to work within the forests it has in itself created a class between the peastantry between those who cannot afford a writ and those who can; the Foresters. Having purchased or managed to negotiate a writ some other way the Foresters are those who are legally allowed to work within the forests and pass freely through them. Those who wish to sell their trade goods within the Town Keeps must now have ownership of a writ. Serfs Those who cannot afford to legally work the forests are the lowered classes of the serfs. With the new law to combat the banditry it has forced the hand of many to either enter endentured service to a local lord and work their trade under his write, to work the forests illegally and ply their trade away from the Kings men or following the letter of the law and simply starving. As starvation is a real possibility for many of the inhabitants of Chalk the Kings Law has actually had an adverse effect, many who were honest workers previously now put their hand to crime and join the bandits fighting back against the nobility. Clansmen To the west of Chalk can be found the Clansmen Territories, established generations ago from exiles of the Duchy of Scarfell, the clan families that live there have etched out their own piece of the territory as their own. More and more exiles and immigrants travel to the Clansmen Territories each year, swelling their numbers, but to many they are still seen as outsiders and are unwelcomed. Making their living from the forests spoils these natural hunters and trackers often keep themselves to themselves, though some of the high clan members will often travel to the nearby Keep Town of Wildermarket to ply their wares and trade for that with which they are without. Tradition and Culture Languages Religion Military